Orthodox Jewish group sues Mahwah over plan to issue eruv summonses

Reporters from NorthJersey.com and lohud.com discuss the growth of Orthodox and ultra-Orthodox communities, and expansion of a Rockland eruv into New Jersey, Aug. 10, 2017.
NorthJersey.com

Slim plastic pipes affixed to a utility pole in Mahwah are part of an eruv, a symbolic boundary that allows Orthodox Jews to perform tasks outside their homes that usually are prohibited on the Sabbath.(Photo: Kevin R. Wexler/NorthJersey.com file photo)

MAHWAH — An Orthodox Jewish group attempting to build an eruv through a section of Mahwah has sued the township over its threat to begin issuing summonses next week, calling the move an anti-Semitic violation of its constitutional and civil rights.

In a lawsuit filed Friday in federal court, the Bergen Rockland Eruv Association and two Orthodox Jewish residents of Rockland County, New York, alleged that the township let fear, xenophobia and religious animus drive its decision Thursday night to start issuing summonses on Aug. 18 if the white PVC pipes on utility poles that currently mark the eruv are not taken down.

“The object, motivation and effect of the actions of the township is to suppress the religious practices of the plaintiffs and certain other Jews who reside in Airmont and other parts of Rockland County,” the lawsuit states. “The eruv presents no aesthetic, safety, traffic, fiscal or other concern to Mahwah.”

The contested eruv, comprised of some 120 pipes or “lechis” in Mahwah, allows Orthodox Jews to push and carry objects outside their homes on the Sabbath and Yom Kippur.

Yehudah Buchweitz, an attorney representing the South Monsey Eruv Fund, a subsidiary of the Bergen Rockland Eruv Association, said Friday that the eruv will remain standing despite the threat of summonses.

“There’s no law that I’m aware of that actually prohibits the lechis,” he said.

The lawsuit alleges that the township, particularly Mayor Bill Laforet, initially recognized the constitutional validity of an eruv but succumbed to a vicious and openly anti-Semitic campaign by certain residents of Mahwah and neighboring municipalities and sharply reversed course.

To justify its change in position, the township argued that the eruv violated a local ordinance that prohibits signs on trees, rocks and utility poles, according to the lawsuit.

A crowd of more than 200 stood in applause Thursday night for the council's unanimous vote to begin issuing summonses

“It was put up by someone without the permission of the township,” Council President Robert Hermansen said of the eruv. “There is not a council member here who voted for this, which is where it should have come through for authorization.”

Laforet, however, requested that the council not go forward with the summonses. He said the council might thrust Mahwah into a costly legal fight if it pursued the court summonses. He cited the case of Tenafly, in which the borough lost a six-year court battle with an eruv group, and incurred hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees.

Laforet instead recommended the township create a window for negotiation with the eruv group.

“I think it doesn’t bode well for our community to issue summonses,” Laforet said. “My opinion was that we simply give these conversations an opportunity to play out for the next two weeks, and then decide what we’ll do,” Laforet said.

The New York group undertook a project in May to expand its Rockland County eruv into Mahwah, Upper Saddle River and Montvale, in order to accommodate families near the New Jersey border.

Orange & Rockland Utilities granted the group permission to install the piping on its poles in the spring.

Although local police had provided security detail for the eruv’s construction, members of the council said they were not aware of the eruv until July.

Upper Saddle River had set a July 26 deadline for the Monsey group to remove the eruv. Mahwah had threatened to issue summonses if the eruv remained standing after Aug. 4, but so far has not done so.

In response, the Monsey group secured pro bono counsel from Weil, Gotshal & Manges, a firm known for successfully handling eruv cases across the country.

The firm convinced Upper Saddle River to lift its deadline after attorneys filed a motion for a temporary restraining order to prevent the eruv’s removal. The motion was withdrawn when Upper Saddle River agreed to not immediately remove the eruv, and to give one week’s notice should the borough reverse course.

In response to the litigation, Upper Saddle River retained Bruce Rosen, an attorney who represented Tenafly in its eruv case.

Laforet said the township will retain the “very best attorneys” if faced with a lawsuit.